At the end of July, Governor Kathy Hochul signed a bill into law allowing big game hunters to use rifles in Onondaga County. The change will take effect this coming hunting season. Use of rifles for big game hunting remains restricted in Erie, Niagara, Monroe, Dutchess, Putnam, and Rockland Counties. Suffolk, Westchester, and portions of Albany and Monroe Counties remain bow only. [Read more…] about Rifles Being Allowed in Onondaga County This Hunting Season
hunting
Exploring The Capital District Wildlife Management Area
The Capital District Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is located in the towns of Berlin and Stephentown in Rensselaer County, NY. Winter, spring, summer, or fall, if you are craving some Adirondack-like scenery, this 4,000-acre (soon to be 10,000-acre) parcel of woods is the place to go. While touring the many interior access roads (they are not plowed in winter), you may see deer, fisher, or even a moose. [Read more…] about Exploring The Capital District Wildlife Management Area
Lead Research Hopes to Improve Bald Eagle, Golden Eagle Conservation Efforts
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is seeking hunters to participate in a multi-year study of non-lead ammunition impacts on the State’s eagle conservation efforts. DEC is partnering with the New York Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at Cornell University, U.S. Geological Survey, and Conservation Science Global on the study to determine the reduction in bald eagle and golden eagle deaths that can be achieved from increased use of non-lead ammunition for deer hunting. [Read more…] about Lead Research Hopes to Improve Bald Eagle, Golden Eagle Conservation Efforts
State Legislature Passes Bill Banning Wildlife Killing Contests
On June 21, 2023, the New York State Assembly passed legislation carried by Deborah Glick, Chair of the Committee on Environmental Conservation to ban wildlife killing contests in New York State. This bill was passed by the State Senate in early June, carried by Senator Timothy Kennedy. If the legislation is signed into law by Governor Kathy Hochul as expected, New York State will become the ninth state to ban wildlife killing contests. [Read more…] about State Legislature Passes Bill Banning Wildlife Killing Contests
When Sullivan County Was A Sportsman’s Paradise
Long before the Ontario and Western Railway touted the healing environment that was Sullivan County beginning in the 1880s, the Erie Railroad had been established along the county’s western edge. By 1850, the Erie had been completed through the county, and it was largely through its promotional efforts that the upper Delaware Valley began to receive notice as “a sportsmen’s paradise.”
By the 1870s, hundreds of people were traveling each weekend to dozens of resorts in the approximately 60-mile-long valley from the Delaware Water Gap to Narrowsburg. These people were drawn here by the river, lakes, and streams. They came to fish and to boat and to hunt. [Read more…] about When Sullivan County Was A Sportsman’s Paradise
Record Broken for Oldest Bear Hunter
When New York State’s big game biologists began compiling the black bear hunting data from this past hunting season, they noticed something unique. Nothing about the black bears reported by hunters or checked by taxidermists seemed out of the ordinary, but there was an outlier in the distribution of the ages of successful hunters. [Read more…] about Record Broken for Oldest Bear Hunter
DEC Releases 2022 Deer Hunting Estimates
Hunters in New York killed an estimated 231,961 deer during the 2022 hunting seasons, a 10-percent increase from last year, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has announced. [Read more…] about DEC Releases 2022 Deer Hunting Estimates
State Museum Showing Seized Elephant Ivory from Illegal Trade
Elephant ivory seized during a massive New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) led crackdown on the illegal ivory trade is now on display at the New York State Museum. The display is a reminder of the rampant and continued slaughter of the African elephant, rhinoceros, and other iconic endangered species that fuel the transnational illegal trade in wildlife. [Read more…] about State Museum Showing Seized Elephant Ivory from Illegal Trade
Goose Bay Boat Launch Project Completed
Construction of a flood resiliency project at Goose Bay Boat Launch in the town of Alexandria, Jefferson County has been completed. The project was awarded $455,000 in grant funding through the State’s Lake Ontario Resiliency and Economic Development Initiative (REDI). The completed improvements will address fluctuating water levels along the St. Lawrence River, as well as promote boater safety. [Read more…] about Goose Bay Boat Launch Project Completed
A New Spring Turkey Hunting Season on Long Island
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has announced the dates for the first-ever spring Long Island wild turkey hunting season. The opening of this new season is the result of wild turkey reintroduction efforts DEC initiated in the mid-1990s. [Read more…] about A New Spring Turkey Hunting Season on Long Island